Research Summary

The basis of my clinical research work is my belief that the successful prevention of poor childhood outcomes requires an alternative understanding of women’s mental and physical health problems beginning in the preconception period. Mental and physical illness, I believe, should be conceptualized as constructs in dynamic relation to the social, historical, cultural, economic, and political context in which families reside. This framework has driven my research thus far in specific projects related to the psychiatric and social epidemiology of depression in pregnancy and prevention of mental illness in women and children.

Extensive Research Description

Advocating for the reduction of racial, ethnic and gender disparities in health has been a driving force in my research thus far. My research is focused on low-income, racial and ethnic minority women who suffer from mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders. A major portion of this work includes investigations into the occurrence and treatment of illnesses in pregnancy, the postpartum period, and during the parenting years. I am interested in not only the impact of maternal psychopathology on a woman’s own morbidity, but also the impact on her parenting style and the long term health and developmental outcomes of her children. Current projects include determining the efficacy and effectiveness of interventions to treat perinatal mood and substance use disorders in novel community settings and investigating the impact of perinatal depressive, anxiety and substance use disorders on birth outcomes and long term parent-child interaction.